I'm told that the prevalence and acceptance of cheating begins quite early on. China is highlighted in this article, but I wouldn't be surprised if this were common in other countries where cheating is accepted as "the way things are" as well. In my own experience, that was one of the most irritating things to teach students. Once they learned about the consequences of plagiarism in the university system in the U.S. and about the software used to detect plagiarism, most of them made a real effort to change. Honestly though, I could see how difficult it was for them to make the change though. In an environment where everyone does something to get ahead, it can be hard to poke one's head over the hedge to see why another system operates in the way that it does and the benefits that come from it.